Internet calling devices, particularly voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) devices, have increased in popularity. Such Internet calling devices may include a VoIP adapter that is connected to a conventional phone, a VoIP telephone that has the functions of the VoIP adapter and a conventional telephone incorporated into a single device, a laptop having voice capabilities, and other devices. Furthermore, mobile Internet calling devices, such as a mobile VoIP device, are portable. In operation, the Internet calling device is connected to a network from some location having Internet connectivity. A call from the Internet calling device is routed through the network, over the Internet, and to existing telephone networks. Thus, a mobile Internet calling device can be used to make telephone calls from virtually any location having Internet connectivity using VoIP or analogous technology.
Although calls can be made through mobile Internet calling devices, because they do not correspond to a fixed location, additional issues may be encountered when attempting to access emergency services through the mobile Internet calling devices. For conventional land lines, a conventional 911 infrastructure is used in routing emergency calls. The conventional 911 infrastructure utilizes a static database that associates telephone numbers for land lines with physical locations. Using this database, the conventional 911 infrastructure routes an emergency call from a land line number to a public safety access point (PSAP) corresponding to the location of the land line initiating the call. The PSAP then connects the emergency call to the appropriate emergency services. In contrast, a mobile Internet calling device is not associated with a fixed location. Consequently, the conventional 911 infrastructure may be unable to route an emergency call from a mobile Internet calling device to the appropriate PSAP. As a result, emergency services may be difficult to access through the mobile Internet calling device.
Some conventional methods have been proposed to aid in routing emergency calls from mobile Internet calling devices using VoIP. Such conventional methods may add hardware devices in networks to which the mobile Internet calling device is connected. These hardware devices associate information such as physical location and/or the corresponding PSAP with the network port over which VoIP traffic for the mobile Internet calling device occurs. Other conventional methods extend technology used in cellular telephones. For cellular telephones, GPS devices incorporated into the cellular phone and/or the cellular tower accessed by the cellular phone can be used to associate the cellular phone with a location. These locations can then be associated with the corresponding PSAP. Other conventional methods require on a static mapping of mobile Internet calling devices to locations which may be used in addition to databases used by the existing 911 infrastructure.
Although these methods may function, there are significant drawbacks. Use of databases that map mobile Internet calling devices to locations may require that the database of the 911 infrastructure be changed, which is undesirable. Conventional VoIP technology for routing emergency calls requires the addition of dedicated hardware, which is undesirable. In addition, this conventional method may require additional information to be shared between the owner of the network to which the mobile Internet calling device is connected and the emergency services infrastructure that routes an emergency call to a PSAP. Consequently, the network and the entity used to relay information to the PSAP would preferably be owned by the same entity. This restriction may be undesirable. Cellular technology relying locations of cell towers would share a similar drawback. Other cellular technology may require the use of GPS devices in mobile Internet calling devices. Typically, mobile Internet calling devices do not include such a device. Thus, associating a mobile Internet calling device with a location, and thus routing calls to the appropriate PSAP may be problematic.
Accordingly, what is needed is a method and system for improving access of mobile Internet calling devices to emergency services. The present invention addresses such a need.